Sportblog + 1899 Hoffenheim | The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog+football/hoffenheim
Indexen-gbGuardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. 2017Tue, 26 Sep 2017 22:22:07 GMT2017-09-26T22:22:07Zen-gbGuardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. 2017The Guardianhttps://assets.guim.co.uk/images/guardian-logo-rss.c45beb1bafa34b347ac333af2e6fe23f.pnghttps://www.theguardian.com
Woe of Cologne continues amid latest video replay stink | Andy Brassellhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/sep/18/woe-of-cologne-continues-amid-latest-video-replay-stink-bundesliga
<p>A 5-0 thrashing at Dortmund could have been worse, even with a dubious VAR decision, and there are already fears of a situation spinning out of control</p><p>Jörg Schmadtke rushed out to the Sky truck in the TV compound to pore over every possible angle – and to check his eyes weren’t deceiving him. By that point, the Köln sporting director had already been on the Signal Iduna Park pitch, shoulder to shoulder with the coach, Peter Stöger, protesting to the referee, Patrick Ittrich, over the award by VAR of Borussia Dortmund’s second goal. </p><p>Before any more fingers start pointing at Effzee about an anarchic end to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/sep/14/cologne-fans-arsenal-english-football-taste-medicine">a chaotic week</a>, we should add that this was a reasonable moment for both men to approach Ittrich. Sokratis Papastathopoulos’s belatedly given strike, which made it 2-0, was the last act of the first half before the players made their way off and Köln’s officials made the most of the moment to get their point across.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2017/sep/15/arsenal-cologne-fans-europa-league">‘For Cologne fans it was the biggest night of our lives. Thanks for having us’</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/sep/18/woe-of-cologne-continues-amid-latest-video-replay-stink-bundesliga">Continue reading...</a>CologneBundesligaEuropean club footballFootballSportBorussia DortmundBayern MunichMainz 05StuttgartWolfsburgWerder BremenSchalkeBayer LeverkusenFreiburgRB LeipzigBorussia Mönchengladbach1899 HoffenheimHertha BerlinAugsburgEintracht FrankfurtMon, 18 Sep 2017 13:13:38 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/sep/18/woe-of-cologne-continues-amid-latest-video-replay-stink-bundesligaPhotograph: Friedemann Vogel/EPAPhotograph: Friedemann Vogel/EPAAndy Brassell2017-09-18T13:13:38ZLiverpool’s Roberto Firmino gets the spotlight and leaves lasting impression | Paul Wilsonhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/aug/23/liverpool-roberto-firmino-hoffenheim-champions-league
Anfield’s other Brazilian provided a masterclass in the second leg against Hoffenheim with his coveted countryman Philippe Coutinho absent<p>Barcelona are expected to test Liverpool’s resolve with one final bid for Philippe Coutinho in the next few days before looking around to see if there are any credible alternatives. For the sake of Jürgen Klopp’s peace of mind it is to be hoped they do not settle on his other Brazilian, Roberto Firmino, because in the absence of the little magician this season the former Hoffenheim player has not only stepped up to the plate but also stepped up his game.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2017/aug/23/liverpool-hoffenheim-champions-league-qualifer-second-leg-match-report">Liverpool return to big time after early flurry sinks Hoffenheim</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/aug/23/liverpool-roberto-firmino-hoffenheim-champions-league">Continue reading...</a>Liverpool1899 HoffenheimChampions LeagueFootballSportWed, 23 Aug 2017 21:09:38 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/aug/23/liverpool-roberto-firmino-hoffenheim-champions-leaguePhotograph: John Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty ImagesPhotograph: John Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty ImagesPaul Wilson at Anfield2017-08-23T21:09:38ZTrent Alexander-Arnold’s display hints at bright future for academy product | Sachin Nakranihttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/aug/16/trent-alexander-arnold-liverpool-academy-product
<p>The full-back’s performance against Hoffenheim suggests Liverpool may have the first locally born star on their hands since Steven Gerrard</p><p>The road from academy prospect to first-team regular is one that only a select few complete. The big clubs in particular are simply not prepared to be patient and wait for a raw teenager to make the grade. The demands are too great, the choices in an increasingly heated transfer market too tantalising. So when one does make a breakthrough it feels only right to take notice and especially when he is curling in free-kicks on his Champions League debut.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2017/aug/15/liverpool-jurgen-klopp-hoffenheim-alexander-arnold">Jürgen Klopp hails Alexander-Arnold’s courage after crucial Liverpool win</a> </p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2017/aug/15/hoffenheim-liverpool-champions-league-match-report">Liverpool close on Champions League group stage with win at Hoffenheim</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/aug/16/trent-alexander-arnold-liverpool-academy-product">Continue reading...</a>Liverpool1899 HoffenheimChampions LeagueFootballSportWed, 16 Aug 2017 08:00:34 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/aug/16/trent-alexander-arnold-liverpool-academy-productPhotograph: John Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty ImagesPhotograph: John Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty ImagesSachin Nakrani2017-08-16T08:00:34ZHoffenheim and Nagelsmann hit new high with historic Bayern win | Andy Brassellhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/apr/06/hoffenheim-and-nagelsmann-hit-new-high-with-historic-bayern-win
<p>There was nothing Hollywood (or FC Hollywood) about Hoffenheim’s victory at the 18th time of trying. It was all very real and credible</p><p>All things come to those who wait, and as Hoffenheim’s owner Dietmar Hopp said as night drew in on Tuesday: “The 18th attempt against Bayern was the most beautiful.”</p><p>Hopp, the 76-year-old software billionaire whose funds have propelled his local club from village obscurity to the Bundesliga’s podium, had every right to enjoy the moment. His team’s 17-match winless streak against German football’s gold standard had encompassed a mix of near misses and – naturally – a few genuine spankings, but this was no fluke or pig-headed rearguard action. Hoffenheim were simply better than Bayern on the night, even if the suspicion that Carlo Ancelotti and company had their forthcoming encounters with Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid on their minds is a legitimate one.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/apr/06/real-madrid-b-side-barcelona-la-liga">Real Madrid's B-side and Barcelona's 'recital' play familiar La Liga tune | Sid Lowe</a> </p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/oct/24/julian-nagelsmann-hoffenheim-prodigy-thomas-tuchel-rejected-bayern-munich">Julian Nagelsmann: prodigy of Thomas Tuchel who rejected Bayern Munich</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/apr/06/hoffenheim-and-nagelsmann-hit-new-high-with-historic-bayern-win">Continue reading...</a>Bundesliga1899 HoffenheimFootballEuropean club footballSportThu, 06 Apr 2017 12:36:56 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2017/apr/06/hoffenheim-and-nagelsmann-hit-new-high-with-historic-bayern-winPhotograph: Ronald Wittek/EPAPhotograph: Ronald Wittek/EPAAndy Brassell2017-04-06T12:36:56ZWolfsburg hope to rouse themselves for Real Madrid after season of freefall | Raphael Honigsteinhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2016/apr/05/wolfsburg-hope-to-rouse-themselves-for-real-madrid-after-season-of-freefall
<p>Wolfsburg have struggled horribly since selling Kevin de Bruyne and though the corporate-backed club’s plight has received scant sympathy their slump has still been alarming</p><p>Now that the Bundesliga can officially boast THE TIGHTEST TITLE-RACE IN EUROPE’S BIG FIVE LEAGUES™, scores of football fans worldwide will no longer be deprived of the joys of German club football by insisting on a real competition between first and second in the table. No boring procession by Juventus, PSG, Barcelona and Leicester City to the championship here: this season, unlike others, is guaranteed to go on all the way into May! </p><p>So welcome, dear millions. It’s good to have you, finally. But please be advised: all is not as initially advertised. The team who were widely tipped to make life difficult for Bayern Munich and exciting for everyone else as the new, coming force in the German top flight, for example, have not lived up to their billing. Far from pushing on after winning the German Cup and <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/jan/30/wolfsburg-bayern-munich-bundesliga-match-report">destroying Pep Guardiola’s side 4-1</a> in January last year, VfL Wolfsburg have gone six steps backwards. A 3-0 away defeat by Bayer Leverkusen on Friday night – so poor that Süddeutsche Zeitung felt “it could amount to a new Volkswagen scandal” – left Dieter Hecking’s men in eighth spot in the table and “in the basement, mood-wise” (NDR), just in time for the biggest game in the club’s history, against Real Madrid in the Champions League. “With that sort of performance, it won’t be very titillating on Wednesday night,” predicted Hecking grimly. Unless Cristiano Ronaldo piques interest on the post-game changing room photo, possibly. </p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/apr/02/borussia-dortmund-werder-bremen-bundesliga-match-report">Borussia Dortmund’s Adrián Ramos strikes to keep pressure on Bayern</a> </p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/football/who-scored-blog/2016/apr/05/champions-league-quarter-final-previews">Champions League quarter-final previews</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2016/apr/05/wolfsburg-hope-to-rouse-themselves-for-real-madrid-after-season-of-freefall">Continue reading...</a>BundesligaWolfsburgBayer LeverkusenReal MadridHannoverCologne1899 HoffenheimBorussia DortmundEuropean club footballFootballSportTue, 05 Apr 2016 14:53:04 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2016/apr/05/wolfsburg-hope-to-rouse-themselves-for-real-madrid-after-season-of-freefallPhotograph: Ronny Hartmann/AFP/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Ronny Hartmann/AFP/Getty ImagesRaphael Honigstein2016-04-05T14:53:04ZLiverpool’s Roberto Firmino: a thiever of balls who never stops running | Marcus Christensonhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2015/jun/24/roberto-firmino-liverpool-thiever-of-balls
<p>The 23-year-old Brazilian arrives with a hefty price tag but his Bundesliga record is excellent and his work rate and application reminiscent of Luis Suárez</p><p>In December 2010 the Hoffenheim sporting director, Ernst Tanner, travelled to the east coast of Brazil to check out a player at the second division side Figueirense. The reports had been promising but Tanner did not know what to expect as he turned up for training to watch the young Roberto Firmino Barbosa de Oliveira.</p><p>Afterwards, Tanner was not much the wiser. “It was strange because during some exercises he would just, without any apparent reason, just fold … but instead of making a big meal out of it and getting angry, he listened carefully to his coach and learned from what he had done wrong. That impressed me.”</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/jun/22/liverpool-danny-ings-number-burnley-england">Liverpool’s new signing Danny Ings prepares to play the numbers game</a> </p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/jun/20/liverpool-joe-gomez-charlton-athletic">Liverpool announce signing of Joe Gomez from Charlton Athletic for £3.5m</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2015/jun/24/roberto-firmino-liverpool-thiever-of-balls">Continue reading...</a>Liverpool1899 HoffenheimBrazilTransfer windowFootballSportWed, 24 Jun 2015 11:09:04 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2015/jun/24/roberto-firmino-liverpool-thiever-of-ballsPhotograph: Ricardo Moraes/ReutersThe energetic Roberto Firmino takes on Venezuela's Ronald Vargas in the Copa América on Sunday. Photograph: Ricardo Moraes/ReutersPhotograph: Ricardo Moraes/ReutersThe energetic Roberto Firmino takes on Venezuela's Ronald Vargas in the Copa América on Sunday. Photograph: Ricardo Moraes/ReutersMarcus Christenson2015-06-24T11:09:04ZBayern Munich on course for another title with the rest up for grabs | Raphael Honigsteinhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/oct/06/bayern-munich-on-course-bundesliga-championship
Bavarian team are so dominant many believe the new-moneyed teams will be more of a threat than the traditional big boys<p>The Bundesliga table makes for uncomfortable reading, except for those of a Bavarian persuasion or who happen to support TSG Hoffenheim. (Thanks for reading this, Dieter. Much appreciated). <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/oct/04/bayern-munich-hannover-bundesliga-match-report">Record champions Bayern Munich, 4-0 winners over Hannover 96</a>, seem to be heading for another championship milestone, having won five of their seven opening games (two draws) – despite the absence of Messrs Schweinsteiger, Thiago Alcantâra and Franck Ribéry, despite post-World-Cup fatigue and despite Pep Guardiola’s new tactical knack of switching between three at the back and four at the back, via an occasional none at the back, every 90 seconds or so.</p><p>Bayern were supposed to be vulnerable at the start of their season but all their problems have proved inconsequential in the light of opposition issues that are vaguely familiar. A depleted Dortmund struggle to get regular domestic wins but turn it on in Europe. Jens Keller’s Schalke are a byword for inconsistency and lack of sustained progress, Leverkusen play good stuff but cannot quite close the deal. It is all a bit Stan Smith: so last season, darling.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/oct/06/bayern-munich-on-course-bundesliga-championship">Continue reading...</a>BundesligaEuropean club footballFootballSportBayern MunichHannoverBorussia DortmundBorussia MönchengladbachSchalkeBayer Leverkusen1899 HoffenheimHamburgAugsburgMon, 06 Oct 2014 22:00:13 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/oct/06/bayern-munich-on-course-bundesliga-championshipPhotograph: Andreas Gebert/ Andreas Gebert/dpa/CorbisBayern Munich are unbeaten this season and have won five out of seven games desite Pep Guardiola's tactical tinkering. Photograph: Andreas Gebert/ Andreas Gebert/dpa/CorbisPhotograph: Andreas Gebert/ Andreas Gebert/dpa/CorbisBayern Munich are unbeaten this season and have won five out of seven games desite Pep Guardiola's tactical tinkering. Photograph: Andreas Gebert/ Andreas Gebert/dpa/CorbisRaphael Honigstein2014-10-06T22:00:13ZThe Honigsteins 2014: an exhaustive review of the Bundesliga season | Raphael Honigsteinhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/jun/02/raphael-honigstein-bundesliga-2013-2014
Despite Bayern’s procession to the title, there was still plenty of unpredictability, from Hamburg’s struggles to Hoffenheim’s headless mascot and Leverkusen’s phantom goal<p>So Bayern Munich once again scraped through to win the Meisterschaft, with Borussia Dortmund a close second, only 19 points adrift. Schalke, who finished third, and Bayer Leverkusen (4th) switched places from 2012-13, but the top four were the only constants in comparison with the previous campaign.</p><p>For all the fashionable laments about a lack of competitiveness, boredom or even the death of the league, this was, as ever, a pleasingly erratic “everything goes” Bundesliga season, with 43,500 people on average going to each of the 306 games, 967 balls going into the net or close enough (the highest return since 1987), three clubs (Hamburg, Stuttgart, Nürnberg) going for a hat-trick of different managers, Europa League contestants (Freiburg, Frankfurt, Stuttgart) almost going down, Augsburg (Augsburg!) going close to international football and Hamburger SV going from bad to unfathomably bad to so beyond-a-joke-bad that they somehow even bungled relegation.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/jun/02/raphael-honigstein-bundesliga-2013-2014">Continue reading...</a>BundesligaBayern MunichBorussia DortmundSchalkeBayer Leverkusen1899 HoffenheimHamburgAugsburgFreiburgEintracht FrankfurtEuropean club footballFootballSportMon, 02 Jun 2014 09:05:53 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/jun/02/raphael-honigstein-bundesliga-2013-2014Photograph: Kai Pfaffenbach/ReutersPep Guardiola celebrates Bayern's record-breaking title triumph, secured in March, but critics still weren't happy. Photograph: Kai Pfaffenbach/ReutersPhotograph: Kai Pfaffenbach/ReutersPep Guardiola celebrates Bayern's record-breaking title triumph, secured in March, but critics still weren't happy. Photograph: Kai Pfaffenbach/ReutersRaphael Honigstein2014-06-02T09:05:53ZSchalke and Leverkusen show harsh Bundesliga reality amid moose antics | Raphael Honigsteinhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/mar/03/schalke-leverkusen-bundesliga-moose-jens-keller-sami-hyypia
Jens Keller's men go from bad to worse and Sami Hyypia's side remain in a stupor as goalkeeping blunders and a man in an animal costume provide the memorable moments<p>Matchday 23 provided the usual, much-loved mix of low-score dross and high-score bonanzas (including Hoffenheim's 6-2 over Wolfsburg in "El Plastico", as the Bundesliga afficionado Archie Rhind-Tutt put it somewhat uncharitably).</p><p>Teutonically incorrect goalkeeping blunders (<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/mar/01/both-goalkeepers-score-own-goals-braunschweig-monchengladbach" title="">see the 1-1 between Braunschweig and Gladbach</a>) <a href="http://sport.bt.com/video-01363814401986?videoid=3281889611001%E2%80%9D http://sport.bt.com/video-01363814401986?videoid=" 3281889611001""="" title="">and a man in a moose costume stumbling over an advertising board and losing his (moose) head in the process</a> – an instant classic in the sparsely populated/nuclear wasteland area known as German humour.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/mar/03/schalke-leverkusen-bundesliga-moose-jens-keller-sami-hyypia">Continue reading...</a>BundesligaWolfsburgBayer Leverkusen1899 HoffenheimSchalkeBayern MunichEuropean club footballFootballSportMon, 03 Mar 2014 12:52:46 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/mar/03/schalke-leverkusen-bundesliga-moose-jens-keller-sami-hyypiaPhotograph: Christof Stache/AFP/Getty ImagesBayern Munich's Arjen Robben scores the fourth goal in the Bundesliga match against Schalke. Photograph: Christof Stache/AFP/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Christof Stache/AFP/Getty ImagesBayern Munich's Arjen Robben scores the fourth goal in the Bundesliga match against Schalke. Photograph: Christof Stache/AFP/Getty ImagesRaphael Honigstein2014-03-03T12:52:46ZBayer Leverkusen 'ghost goal' could prompt Germany to draw the line | Raphael Honigsteinhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2013/oct/21/bayer-leverkusen-ghost-goal
Calls for goalline technology grow louder in Bundesliga after goal is awarded when the ball finds a hole in side-netting<p>It's not quite true that history had never been made in Sinsheim before. Older readers of this column will undoubtedly recall that the Prussian king Frederick the Great (18) was caught in the town during his attempted flight to England with his favourite page, Keith (13), in 1730. But Friday's Bundesliga game between Hoffenheim and Bayer Leverkusen at the Rhein-Neckar-Stadion seemed somehow bigger than that. It will go down in the annals of German football for the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxekQcBH3pc" title="">ghostliest ghost goal ever – "Phantom-Tor"</a> is the technical term – and maybe, just maybe, as the game that pushed everybody over the line, if you pardon the pun, towards goal technology.</p><p>Here's what happened. Leverkusen were 1-0 up in the 68th minute when the national manager, Joachim Löw, was caught sitting in the stands, looking away from the game with mixture of boredom and slight revulsion. A Bayer corner came in from the left, Stefan Kiessling came across his man is classic striker mode at the near post and hit the side-netting with his header. He then turned around, hands on his head in disappointment.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2013/oct/21/bayer-leverkusen-ghost-goal">Continue reading...</a>BundesligaBayer Leverkusen1899 HoffenheimFootballSportMon, 21 Oct 2013 17:02:33 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2013/oct/21/bayer-leverkusen-ghost-goalPhotograph: Daniel Roland/AFP/Getty ImagesBayen Leverkusen's Stefan Kiessling, left, celebrates his goal against Hoffenheim in the usual fashion. Photograph: Daniel Roland/AFP/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Daniel Roland/AFP/Getty ImagesBayen Leverkusen's Stefan Kiessling, left, celebrates his goal against Hoffenheim in the usual fashion. Photograph: Daniel Roland/AFP/Getty ImagesRaphael Honigstein2013-10-21T17:02:33ZSchalke staggering towards another shambles after Hoffenheim drawhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2013/sep/30/schalke-hoffenheim-bundesliga-roundup
Jens Keller's tenure looks close to implosion after 3-1 lead let slip and Jermaine Jones is first banned and then reprieved<p><em>I've got the blues, what shall I do?</em> (Marvin Jenkins)</p><p>The defence was a shambles, the midfield disorganised, the attack shamefully dependent on one key player. The whole team were simply going through the motions on Saturday and another poor result plunged them deep into mid-table mediocrity. Shockingly, they have won only two matches in the league so far. And there's a very tough Champions League away game to contend with, too.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2013/sep/30/schalke-hoffenheim-bundesliga-roundup">Continue reading...</a>BundesligaSchalke1899 HoffenheimBayer LeverkusenHamburgBorussia DortmundEuropean club footballFootballSportMon, 30 Sep 2013 16:46:08 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2013/sep/30/schalke-hoffenheim-bundesliga-roundupPhotograph: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty ImagesJens Keller hopes his side continue their winning Champions League start to distract from their poor Bundesliga form. Photograph: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty ImagesJens Keller hopes his side continue their winning Champions League start to distract from their poor Bundesliga form. Photograph: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty ImagesRafael Honigstein2013-09-30T16:46:08ZHamburg take part in another horror show but lose their power to shock | Raphael Honigsteinhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2013/aug/19/bundesliga-hamburg-hoffenheim-bayern
One of Germany's best supported, traditional clubs were again beaten heavily but alongside the anger there was little surprise<p>"Horror show", "disaster", "debacle", (<a href="http://www.mopo.de/home/5066546,5066546.html" title="">Mopo</a>); "downfall", "shooting gallery" (<a href="http://www.bild.de/" title="">Bild</a>); "a subterranean catastrophe" (the Hamburg goalkeeper René Adler): It wasn't so much the performance by the Rothosen in the 5-1 home defeat by TSG Hoffenheim that appalled their supporters but the fact that the associated "shock" headlines have lost their power to shock.</p><p>Starting the season this poorly has become a way of life at Hamburg, and defeats of a similar magnitude throughout the last campaign have exhausted both the tabloid crisis vernacular and the possibilities for grand gestures of repentance. There are only so many remorseful barbecue parties you can invite your fans to, even if your name is Hamburger SV.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2013/aug/19/bundesliga-hamburg-hoffenheim-bayern">Continue reading...</a>Hamburg1899 HoffenheimBundesligaEuropean club footballFootballSportMon, 19 Aug 2013 15:14:45 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2013/aug/19/bundesliga-hamburg-hoffenheim-bayernPhotograph: Thomas Eisenhuth/ Thomas Eisenhuth/dpa/CorbisRafael van der Vaart was subbed and jeered during Hamburg's 5-1 home defeat to Hoffenheim. Photograph: Thomas Eisenhuth/dpa/CorbisPhotograph: Thomas Eisenhuth/ Thomas Eisenhuth/dpa/CorbisRafael van der Vaart was subbed and jeered during Hamburg's 5-1 home defeat to Hoffenheim. Photograph: Thomas Eisenhuth/dpa/CorbisRaphael Honigstein2013-08-19T15:14:45ZBayern Munich back on track after Thomas Müller's wonder strike | Raphael Honigsteinhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2012/nov/05/bayern-hamburg-thomas-muller-strike
Franck Ribéry looks to be back to his very best but he was upstaged by Thomas Müller at Hamburg<p>It has become common to describe the first goal in a game as a <em>Türöffner</em>, a door-opener. Few teams are more in need of said key intervention than Bayern, a side who truly come into their own once spaces open up in the opposition half. But on Saturday night at the Imtech Arena, it wasn't so much Bastian Schweinsteiger's stooped header before the break that made the real difference but the second goal, a truly wondrous strike from Thomas Müller. There's no obvious comparison in tool box terms but if Schweinsteiger opened the door, Müller knocked up an exquisitely-shaped chaise longue for the visitors to settle down and put their feet up for good in the 3-0 win at Hamburg. "It was important for us, it gave us the chance to take a deep breath," the 23-year-old said about <a href="http://www.101greatgoals.com/gvideos/thomas-muller-bayern-munich-v-hamburg/" title="">his unlikely strike</a>.</p><p>Chances are people in Germany will see it again and again this season. It's a dead-cert for the Goal of the Month competition and will push Marco Reus's pile-driver against Greece at the Euros all the way for the Goal of the Year prize, too.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2012/nov/05/bayern-hamburg-thomas-muller-strike">Continue reading...</a>BundesligaBayern MunichHamburgSchalke1899 HoffenheimStuttgartEintracht FrankfurtBayer LeverkusenEuropean club footballFootballSportMon, 05 Nov 2012 16:44:12 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2012/nov/05/bayern-hamburg-thomas-muller-strikePhotograph: Michael Sohn/APThomas Müller, left, celebrates after his goal helped Bayern Munich beat Hamburg 3-0. Photograph: Michael Sohn/APPhotograph: Michael Sohn/APThomas Müller, left, celebrates after his goal helped Bayern Munich beat Hamburg 3-0. Photograph: Michael Sohn/APRaphael Honigstein2012-11-05T16:44:12ZEmotions run high as Hoffenheim play on for Boris Vukcevic | Raphael Honigsteinhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2012/oct/01/hoffenheim-boris-vukcevic-bundesliga
Hoffenheim's match with Augsburg went ahead despite their midfielder's induced coma, but the atmosphere at the Rhein-Neckar-Arena was too fraught to produce a match of note<p>Every game had an interesting story to tell this weekend, every game but one: Hoffenheim's 0-0 draw against Augsburg was as uneventful and inconsequential as they come in Germany. The match in the Rhein-Neckar-Arena had seemingly made up its mind that being a real match was impossible as well as ill-fitting under the circumstances. "It did the best it could do," wrote Süddeutsche Zeitung, "it refused to play ball altogether and didn't let in any goals."</p><p>Late on, something of note did actually happen. The Hoffenheim midfielder Sead Salihovic was sent off for a violent foul and the coach, Markus Babbel, was banished to the stand after some irate words towards the official. But no one in nor outside the ground really cared. After the final whistle, the whole Hoffenheim team were wearing No7 shirts in front of the hardcore supporters' section. There was some applause, some chanting but mostly an awkward, anxious sadness. Because the man who usually wears No7 wasn't there: midfielder Boris Vukcevic is in an induced coma at a Heidelberg hospital following a head-on collision of his Mercedes with a truck on his way to training on Friday afternoon. The 22-year-old's condition was "still critical but stable," according to TSG's home page on Monday. He reportedly suffered extensive head injuries.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2012/oct/01/hoffenheim-boris-vukcevic-bundesliga">Continue reading...</a>Bundesliga1899 HoffenheimEuropean club footballFootballSportMon, 01 Oct 2012 16:21:28 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2012/oct/01/hoffenheim-boris-vukcevic-bundesligaPhotograph: Daniel Maurer/APHoffenheim supporters hold a banner reading 'For Boris heartfelt all the best'. Photograph: Daniel Maurer/APPhotograph: Daniel Maurer/APHoffenheim supporters hold a banner reading 'For Boris heartfelt all the best'. Photograph: Daniel Maurer/APRaphael Honigstein2012-10-01T16:21:28ZHannover's injury-time win over Werder diminished by shirty official | Raphael Honigsteinhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2012/sep/17/bundesliga-hannover-werder-bremen-hoffenheim
Late drama at the AWD Arena, Henry Kissinger comes home and is there a hidden agenda at declining Hoffenheim?<p>The weekend was all about Nipplegate at the House of Hanover, Part II. If the storyline seems familiar, there were just enough twists and changes to keep the insalubrious masses interested. Unlike the earlier instalment, the sequel was not set in the lush surroundings of a Provence villa but at the slightly draftier AWD Arena. And major offence was taken at the topless frolicking itself, not its subsequent depiction in the media.</p><p>But let's start from the top. The derby between Hannover 96 and Werder Bremen on Saturday had not only promised goals but also an answer to the question of who's number one in the north – Hamburger SV, who could rightfully claim this unofficial title a while a go, are sadly no longer in the running after they lost 3-2 to Frankfurt on Sunday night, a defeat that sucked Mary Arnesen's Frank-enstein of a team further into the relegation struggle.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2012/sep/17/bundesliga-hannover-werder-bremen-hoffenheim">Continue reading...</a>BundesligaEuropean club footballFootballHannoverWerder Bremen1899 HoffenheimMon, 17 Sep 2012 11:00:35 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2012/sep/17/bundesliga-hannover-werder-bremen-hoffenheimPhotograph: Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty ImagesHannover's Szabolcs Huszti celebrates his injury-time winner against Werder Bremen. It was his last action as he received two yellow cards, one for the leaving the pitch and the other for removing his shirt. Photograph: Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty ImagesHannover's Szabolcs Huszti celebrates his injury-time winner against Werder Bremen. It was his last action as he received two yellow cards, one for the leaving the pitch and the other for removing his shirt. Photograph: Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty ImagesRaphael Honigstein2012-09-17T11:00:35Z500 litres of beer, 800 Bratwürste – but no points for hapless Hoffenheim | Raphael Honigsteinhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2012/sep/03/bundesliga-hoffenheim-babbel-frankfurt
Markus Babbel is under pressure after his nine-man Hoffenheim were destroyed 4-0 at home by Eintracht Frankfurt<p>It would be unkind to call TSG Hoffenheim's weekend a complete write-off: on Sunday night, they moved up one place from bottom to 17th. That marginal improvement, however, was both totally unmerited and simply accidental, as 1899 benefited from <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/8649779.stm" title="">VfB Stuttgart's uncanny Robert Dee impersonation</a> at the Allianz Arena. The Swabians were shot down 6-1 in Munich to take over wooden spoon duties on account of an inferior goal difference.</p><p>Being slightly less rubbish than their bigger southwestern neighbours will offer scant consolation to Hoffe over the international break. Their shockingly feeble 4-0 home defeat by promoted Eintracht Frankfurt means they've lost three out of three competitive matches, conceding 10 goals, and the only reason Saturday's abject awfulness didn't constitute a new low is that their 4-0 cup defeat by fourth division Berliner AK, an historic embarrassment for a Bundesliga side, is impossible to beat. "Hoffenheim slide into chaos," wrote Focus, before juxtaposing the stats from a reportedly convivial meeting between supporters and players in a pub in midweek with those on the board: "500 litres of beer, 800 <em>Bratwürste</em>, zero points."</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2012/sep/03/bundesliga-hoffenheim-babbel-frankfurt">Continue reading...</a>Bundesliga1899 HoffenheimEuropean club footballFootballSportMon, 03 Sep 2012 10:31:21 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2012/sep/03/bundesliga-hoffenheim-babbel-frankfurtPhotograph: Alex Domanski/ReutersHoffenheim's Daniel Williams, right, and Eren Derdiyok after their 4-0 beating. Photograph: Alex Domanski/ReutersPhotograph: Alex Domanski/ReutersHoffenheim's Daniel Williams, right, and Eren Derdiyok after their 4-0 beating. Photograph: Alex Domanski/ReutersRaphael Honigstein2012-09-03T10:31:21ZStuttgart's men at work building strong foundations for better futurehttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2011/oct/17/bundesliga-blog-raphael-honigstein
By strengthening the squad with astute purchases and reducing the wage bill, the Swabians are stable and consistent at last<p>It's the sort of thing that happens with depressing regularity on windswept Wednesday afternoons in UK university football but was unheard of in the Bundesliga before TSG 1899 Hoffenheim schlepped 78 kilometres south to play VfB Stuttgart only to find out that the derby wasn't on. At least as far as the Swabians were concerned, it wasn't. "There is no derby, not yet," Stuttgart's sporting director, Fredi Bobic, told the miffed visitors. "Our supporters don't regard this as a derby. There is just not enough tradition, irrespective of the date in the [opponents'] badge."</p><p>It was a cheap shot, to be sure, but as a former striker who specialised in the ugliest of goals, Bobic clearly felt it needed to be taken anyway. The slight seemed to backfire at first. Hoffenheim played as if they were contesting a derby in the Mercedes Benz Arena, while Bruno Labbadia's men had trouble coming to grips with the formidable skills of Ryan Babel and Firmino.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2011/oct/17/bundesliga-blog-raphael-honigstein">Continue reading...</a>BundesligaFootballSportStuttgart1899 HoffenheimEuropean club footballMon, 17 Oct 2011 14:57:33 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2011/oct/17/bundesliga-blog-raphael-honigsteinPhotograph: Michele Danze/EPAStuttgart's Pavel Pogrebnyak (right) celebrates with his team-mates after scoring the second goal against Hoffenheim. Photograph: Michele Danze/EPAPhotograph: Michele Danze/EPAStuttgart's Pavel Pogrebnyak (right) celebrates with his team-mates after scoring the second goal against Hoffenheim. Photograph: Michele Danze/EPARaphael Honigstein2011-10-17T14:57:33ZBundesliga 2011-12 season preview | Raphael Honigsteinhttps://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2011/aug/05/bundesliga-season-preview-2011-2012
Most German teams are following Dortmund's lead and putting their faith in youth, but can anyone stop big-spending Bayern?<p>It'll be sold out, of course, watched by more countries than ever and kick off a new season that will undoubtedly entertain with the traditional mix of goal-gluts, managerial pandemonium and beyond-silly off-the-pitch antics. In total, close to half a million season tickets have been sold already, a new record. But Friday night's curtain-raiser between champions Dortmund and a Hamburger SV side that's so radically reconstructed that you might as well call it Jocelyn has not been accompanied by quite the hype we have become used to in recent years. There is little of the punch-drunk euphoria that greeted the Bundesliga's return after the 2010 World Cup, more a sense of relief that weekends matter again.</p><p>Two factors are chiefly responsible for this relatively sober comeback of Germany's favourite pastime. First, the sheer number of big club crises and axed managers in 2010-11 have exhausted the league. As a result of all that disorder, the clubs were forced to ring in the changes early. New managers (Jupp Heynckes, Bayern; Robin Dutt, Leverkusen; Marcus Sorg, SC Freiburg; Stale Solbakken, Köln; Holger Stanislawski, Hoffenheim;) were hired well before the summer started and the key, most expensive transfers (Manuel Neuer, €22m to Bayern, André Schürrle, €8m to Leverkusen) were front-loaded.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2011/aug/05/bundesliga-season-preview-2011-2012">Continue reading...</a>BundesligaBorussia DortmundBayer LeverkusenBayern MunichHannoverMainz 05NurnbergKaiserslauternHamburgFreiburgCologne1899 HoffenheimStuttgartWerder BremenSchalkeWolfsburgBorussia MönchengladbachHertha BerlinFootballEuropean club footballSportFri, 05 Aug 2011 08:18:35 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2011/aug/05/bundesliga-season-preview-2011-2012Photograph: Joern Pollex/Bongarts/Getty ImagesBayern Munich's new signing Manuel Neuer is one of the few big-money Bundesliga signings this summer. Photograph: Joern Pollex/Bongarts/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Joern Pollex/Bongarts/Getty ImagesBayern Munich's new signing Manuel Neuer is one of the few big-money Bundesliga signings this summer. Photograph: Joern Pollex/Bongarts/Getty ImagesRaphael Honigstein2011-08-05T08:18:35ZHoffenheim and Mainz surge on as records and Michael Ballack tumble | Raphael Honigsteinhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2010/sep/13/hoffenheim-mainz-michael-ballack-bundesliga
Unfancied clubs count their blessings but the returning Germany captain curses his luck<p>In these early, heady Bundesliga weeks, grandiose records are no more difficult to come by than in <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rY_F6nEewY" title="Frankfurt's Friedberger Landstraße between 1988 and 1990">Frankfurt's Friedberger Landstraße between 1988 and 1990</a> (60 seconds in). Three wins in three games for both Hoffenheim (2-0 at home v Schalke) and Mainz (2-1 over Kaiserslautern) at the very top of the table, for example, unsurprisingly constitute "best-ever" Bundesliga starts for two clubs with almost zero pedigree at this level.</p><p>Hoffenheim weren't quite the razor-sharp passing and counter-attacking machine that threatened to eat up the competition two years ago in the Rhein-Neckar-Arena on Friday night, but they're a much harder-working, fitter and more collectively-minded side than the one who flirted with relegation last season.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2010/sep/13/hoffenheim-mainz-michael-ballack-bundesliga">Continue reading...</a>Bundesliga1899 HoffenheimEuropean club footballMainz 05HannoverFootballSportMon, 13 Sep 2010 10:47:51 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2010/sep/13/hoffenheim-mainz-michael-ballack-bundesligaPhotograph: Wolfgang Rattay/ReutersBremen's goalkeeper Tim Wiese, right, and the defender Clemens Fritz, left, combine to block a shot from Bayern's Franck Ribery. Photograph: Wolfgang Rattay/ReutersPhotograph: Wolfgang Rattay/ReutersBremen's goalkeeper Tim Wiese, right, and the defender Clemens Fritz, left, combine to block a shot from Bayern's Franck Ribery. Photograph: Wolfgang Rattay/ReutersRaphael Honigstein2010-09-13T10:47:51ZWolfsburg show their hunger as Hoffenheim keep Bayern at bay | Raphael Honigsteinhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2009/aug/10/wolfsburg-bayern-german-football-raphael-honigstein
The first week of the new Bundesliga season proved last year's winners are still strong, while Bayern will not be having have it all their own way<br /><p>A record-breaking 179 out of 193 officially recognised nation states – get with the programme, Bhutan and Fiji -&nbsp;tuned in live on Friday night to see that everything remains slightly different in the Bundesliga. VfL Wolfsburg, who, you might remember, "did a Stuttgart" when they won the <em>Meisterschaft</em> with an implausibly good run after the winter break, overcame 2007's surprise champions 2-0. It was an entertaining, finely balanced affair "on eye-to-eye level" (the Wolfsburg manager Armin Veh), edged by the home side thanks to better finishing and untimely Ludovic Magnin cat-naps on the pitch.</p><p>"First again!", cheered Wolfsburger Allgemeine Zeitung. Süddeutsche thought Misimovic, Dzeko and co seemed "like a family who return after a summer holiday, unlock the door, put down the suitcases and turn on the light to find everything unchanged but for a small film of dust. As if they had never been away".</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2009/aug/10/wolfsburg-bayern-german-football-raphael-honigstein">Continue reading...</a>WolfsburgStuttgart1899 HoffenheimBayern MunichFranck RibéryBundesligaEuropean club footballFootballSportMon, 10 Aug 2009 10:23:42 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2009/aug/10/wolfsburg-bayern-german-football-raphael-honigsteinPhotograph: Axel Heimken/APWolfsburg's fans celebrate their side's win over VfB Stuttgart on Friday evening. Photograph: Axel Heimken/APPhotograph: Axel Heimken/APWolfsburg's fans celebrate their side's win over VfB Stuttgart on Friday evening. Photograph: Axel Heimken/APRaphael Honigstein2009-08-10T10:23:42Z